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Page 1: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere
Page 2: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere

©2020 Sathya Sai International OrganisationAll Rights Reserved

sathyasai.org

Page 3: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere
Page 4: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere

A lioness was passing through a forest and gave birth to a cub and died. This lion cub was found by a shepherd who took it under his care and raised it with his sheep. The baby lion grew up amongst the sheep, ate grass and bleated like the sheep. After several years, another lion was passing by and was surprised to see a lion among the sheep. This lion chased the sheep and all the sheep fled in fright. The young lion also fled along with the sheep. Finally, the lion caught hold of the young lion, took him to a nearby lake and showed him his reflection in the water. He said, “look, you are a lion and not a sheep. Do not be afraid. Do not bleat like a sheep. Roar like a lion.”

Swami wants us to assert our true nature which is divine Atma or divine love. He wants us to roar like the lion of Vedanta asserting our Godhead and not to identify ourselves with our limited body, mind, and intellect.

In s p I r at I o n a l st o ry

Assert your True Nature

Page 5: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere

SURRENDER

True Surrender

The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere God is present. The recognition of the presence of God in all Jivas is the true meaning of the word surrender. We should perform all the tasks enjoined upon us as our duty and it is not right to neglect our duty, sit idly and say that you have surrendered everything to the Lord. If you have the feeling that all the work that you do is to please God, then that is the right aspect of surrender or Saranagathi. It cannot be the meaning of surrender to give the consequences of all the bad that you do to God and take the consequences of all the good that you do to yourself.

Summer Showers in Brindavan, 1974, Ch. 3

The Three Aspects of Saranagathi

Surrender involves three entities: one is the person who surrenders the other the one to whom he surrenders, and the third is the act of surrender. If we analyse carefully in the spiritual sense, you have a person, mirror, and reflection. When you remove the mirror, the reflection is automatically gone. So, you find three minus one becomes one only. It is the person only that remains.

Similarly, prakriti (world) is the mirror, and jeeva (individual) is the reflection of the Divine. When prakriti, the mirror, is removed, what remains is only one, that is, the Divine. The individual is only a reflection. When your vision is towards prakriti (world), you have duality. When your vision is turned inward; you are One, that is, God and nothing else. Even Prakriti is the creation of God. When everything is divine, there is no second.

This divine is nothing but love, which is in all beings. Love is God, live in love. It has no beginning and no end. It is infinite; you cannot fragment it. All spiritual paths are paths of love. The goal is also love. It is that which always exists in this world. Never give up love at any time.

Divine Discourse, 23 April 1998

st u d y Gu I d e

Excerpts from Divine Discoursesfor Contemplation

Page 6: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere

SELF-INQUIRY

Who am I?

True spiritual practice lies in understanding one’s true identity. One should enquire, “Who am I”? All the spiritual practices are meant to make you realise who you really are. Everyone uses the term ‘I’ while introducing themself. It means that the principle of ‘I’ (Self) present in you is the same as the one in others. But man is unable to understand this oneness. He is carried away by the differences based on physical body. Consequently, he is giving room to conflicts and unrest.

Embodiments of Love! Birth and death are related to the body and not to the individual soul. Mind is responsible for both. Everything is man’s own making. Life is a dream. How can anything that appears in a dream be true? It is all a mere illusion. As long as you are immersed in this bhrama (delusion), you cannot have the vision of Brahma. Only when you break the shackles of illusion can you experience the reality.

Divine Discourse, 25 December 2003

Everything is in You. Everything is the Reflection of Your Inner Being

Everything is a manifestation of Brahman. Seeing a rope at a distance in darkness and suspecting it to be a snake, a man shouts in fear. Soon, another person arrives and assures him that it is not a snake but a rope. The moment he knows the truth that it is only a rope and not a snake, his fear is gone. It was a rope before he saw it, it was a rope when he mistook it for a snake, and it was only a rope when he realised the truth. The rope symbolises Brahman (Impersonal Supreme Being, God, Atma), which, due to delusion, humanity mistakes for nature. One realises the truth when a person of true knowledge (a jnani) comes and tells one that it is not nature but the manifestation of Brahman itself. All that we see in the visible world is nothing but Brahman. But people, out of ignorance, think, “Where is Brahman, and where are we! We are ordinary mortals, whereas Brahman is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient.” It is a mistake to say so. You are verily the omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient Brahman. But because of a worldly outlook created by delusion, you think you are a mere mortal. You aspire to see God, thinking He is different from you. All that you see around you, all that you experience is Brahman. But still you want to see Brahman.

All of you want bliss. If you follow Me, you will be always in a state of bliss. In fact, bliss is in you, with you, around you, above you, and below you. You are the embodiment of bliss. Why should you search for bliss outside when it is already present in you? You are deluded into thinking that you can get happiness from worldly objects. There is no happiness in this world. Everything is in you. Everything is the reflection of your inner being. You are the embodiment of Brahman. Consider yourself as Brahman. Always live in the constant awareness, “I am Brahman, I am Brahman.” When you develop this awareness, you will become Brahman.

However, this is not so easy. But continuous and constant practice will help you realise this oneness.

Divine Discourse, Guru Poornima, 30 July 1996

Page 7: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere

Be reminding yourself “I am not different from God”

From this day, keep ever in your memory what I am about to tell you:

1. “I am God; I am not different from God.” Be conscious of this always. Keep it ever in mind. “I am God; I am God. I am not different from God.” Be reminding yourself of this. Pray that you may not fail in this sadhana (spiritual exercise).

2. “I am the Akhanda Para Brahman (Indivisible Supreme Absolute).” This is the second Truth to be established in the consciousness by unremitting repetition and prayer.

3. I am Sath-Chith-Ananda (“Being, Awareness, Bliss”). Divine Bliss is the goal to be ever kept in view.

4. “Grief and anxiety can never affect me.” Develop this Faith and convince yourselves of this Truth by repeated assurance and prayer.

5. “I am ever content; fear can never enter me.” Feel thus forever. Pray that this conviction grows stronger and stronger. Exhort yourself, “O self! Utter ‘Om Tat Sath’, ‘Om Tat Sath’ “the threefold symbol of Brahman. As the physical body is maintained healthy and strong by the five pranas (vital airs), these five prayers will endow you with the “awareness of Brahman,” which is the same as “the status of Brahman Itself.”

Divine Discourse, 23 November 1983

“God is”- the powerful five-letter mantra

On this Guru Poornima day I do not intend to give you any Ashtakshari (eight letter) or Panchakshari (five-letter) mantra based on any particular deity’s name. Nor am I enjoining you to study any Upanishad, or the Gita or the Brahma Sutras. There is a simple five-letter pronouncement. “God is” (“Devudunnaadu” in Telugu). Make this your sheet-anchor. If you go on reciting it, thinking over it, acting up to it and conveying it to others, immersing yourself in the bliss of this experience, you will be making the greatest contribution to the welfare of the world. (Swami recited a poem on the glories of God’s creation to prove “Devudunnaadu”). Consider this mantra as the message for this Guru Poornima and proclaim it in all circumstances and at all places with all the conviction and strength you can command. The world can be turned into an earthly paradise if you strengthen your faith in God and demonstrate it in your actions. You must have the courage and determination to face any kind of problems and difficulties. By propagating this mantra, you can promote the love of God and the fear of sin among the people. The mantra “God is” can be more powerful than a mantra based on any particular deity’s name.

Have this five-letter mantra as your constant companion and strengthen your faith in God. This will lead in due course to God-realisation.

Divine Discourse, Guru Poornima, 21 July 1986

Page 8: ©2020 Sathya Sai International Organisation · 2020-06-29 · SURRENDER True Surrender The true meaning of surrender is the recognition of the fact that in everyone and everywhere

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Questions for Reflection

Questions for Reflection

1. What would be the most fitting offering to the Guru?

2. What are the lessons learnt from the 2020 Guru Poornima Study Guides in three parts?

3. What are the spiritual practices we should engage in to realise our divine nature?

4. How does surrender and self-enquiry lead us to God-realisation?